Defenestration a la Mode

I was wondering if someone could enlighten me to what visitation days entail for Sociology programs (PhD). I know one program I have applied for invites people to their visit day pending their admission decision (and to the best of my understanding that typically means you're in unless you're not who you said you are), I just am not sure if that's common or not. Do some schools have visit days after you're already accepted? And do all schools typically have visit days? Thanks.

I was waondering if anyone had general advice on how to start looking for funding as a graduate applicant (i.e. I haven't yet been accepted). It seems to me that I haven't really found much that would apply in my case, and that most funding seems aimed at people already in grad school. Is that pretty accurate? I know most schools that I want to go to offer funding for the first few years, either through waived tuition or RAs/TAs, but I was wondering if there's much in terms of external funding I could look for now, and how I would go about trying to find that. A beginner's guide is basically what I need. Thanks.

Hello all, On one of my applications, there is a space for a Diversity Statement. My question is, if I am a suburban white male, is it poor form to fill it out? I don't think I've had any glaring adversities in my life, the only notable ones would be my parents divorce, the subsequent living with my brother, and difficulties with ADD, which in the grand scheme of things are not very, well, adverse I guess. I do think I am a unique candidate in terms having a wide array of life experiences that have given me (what I would consider) wisdom that surpasses a vast majority of my peers, but I'm just not sure if the diversity statement the venue for that type of thing (and by that I mean, travel, the wide variety of jobs I've worked, community service, etc.). Is it viable to say that I'm diverse because I find ways to have unique experiences and engage with people not like me and try to push my comfort zone? Thank you for your thoughts

I'm actually in the same boat of looking for readers to offer up some constructive criticism for my writing sample. I don't think any of my papers from college correctly reflect my ability (I spent too much time playing ultimate), so I'm trying to beef up one of my (hopefully better) papers. I can send it to an email or PM if that works better for you. Sol_Barber, if you'd be interested in exchanging papers, I'd be more than happy to do that. I'm probably not the most qualified person, but I can offer up my opinions at the very least.

Hello, I am finishing up my applications for Sociology programs and have finally turned my attention to my last piece, my writing sample. I'm using a paper I did in college, but unfortunately I don't think I ever lived up to my potential in regards to paper-writing while in school. I've been revising it somewhat, but I was hoping to get a few other opinions and constructive criticism (feel free to emphasize either). I don't know if messages work better, or if you'd rather get it in an email, just let me know. I felt weird copying and pasting 12 pages of a paper up here, but I don't have any qualms about that either. I'm happy to offer something in return, whether that be advice or reading a paper for you in return, either way I appreciate it. Thank you very much, Will

My girlfriend just 'graduated' from TFA and majored in Education at a 4 year college before that. Overall she liked it, but it definitely had its pros and cons. As far as getting accepted, they only have around 5% of their group every year as education majors, so you'll definitely be in the minority, but they do accept them. You don't need to major in what you'll be teaching, but they will try to use your strengths IF they can. My girlfriend studied elementary ed, and they almost placed her in middle school, so it depends on what they need, but it could definitely give you a leg up. The application process is more about figuring out who will make it through the two years than what you studied in college, because it's a hard two years. If you have a chance to talk to someone admitted, they should be able to give you good tips for the application process. They accept a lot of Pol. Sci. majors actually, because they have two stated goals, one being to close the achievement gap, and the other is to affect political policy - lots of TFA grads go into politics, so it's a nice alumni group to be a part of. I think majoring in education was actually a bonus for my girlfriend once she was in the program, because as someone said, their training is pretty rushed, so it was nice that she knew what they were talking about. The schools you work in are pretty bad, so it's definitely an eye-opener. The other staff is often a little guarded toward you, because some of them are likely losing their jobs as the school is reinventing itself. If you get a good placement or not is pretty up in the air. As for post-bac. certification classes. So they make sure you have your teaching certificate, but not necessarily a degree. Then you get an Americorps grant for $5000 or so per year to pursue your education, as well as access to a plethora of scholarships/discounts. Additionally I think the training counts as a few credits towards a masters. You take classes the summer before you start, and it's a pretty tough summer as far as time and effort invested, plus you're in the worst schools in the US. Then you have a person who helps/supports you during the school year. TFA has a pretty progessive mentality, and at her first school after TFA, she feels prepared and like she already knows about a lot of new stuff the administration is implementing. If you really want to teach long-term, I'd recommend the education major, as I think that helped her actually be prepared for teaching. I think TFA helped her to be a better teacher as well, but I don't think I'd say they cover the traditional/basic teaching stuff as much. In an undergrad education program you'll have the chance to student teach, which makes a big difference. TFA is pretty tough, but taught her a lot. Sorry, that was a little all over the place, there's just a lot to say. I wish you luck.

Thank you very much for the advice. That being said, I took some time to consider what you wrote and I still want to apply this fall, even if it's not the wisest decision. I would like to do as much as I can with the time I have, and then/when I get to a point where I feel like it's greatly affecting my chances then I'll try again next year. I know I have a couple things to figure out in the next few months, but considering I won't start until next year I feel really ready. I've had a year of transition coming out of college and want to move onto something more tangible, something I've been looking forward to. I hope that doesn't make me sound rash, because I'm sure it's wise advice, I just want to get going. Thanks again. Does anyone have any suggestions for my more specific questions?

Hello, I'm planning on taking the GRE soon and applying to PhD sociology programs later this year, and I had a few questions I was hoping you might help me address. Sorry if this is long, but I figure the more you know, the more you might be able to help. Real quick a bit about me. I graduated in May 2012 after studying Anthro and Peace Studies (major and supplementary major respectively) at Notre Dame. I will be the first to admit (and regret) that my classes weren't as high a priority for me as they should have been, and I didn't consider grad school until late in my senior year. I had a 3.3 cumulative and no real research/thesis/work with a professor. Over the past year I've been teaching preschool as a year of service, and am still figuring out what I'll do until grad school, and am strongly considering travelling. I know that's probably not great experience, but my time off has really helped me hone what I want to be pursuing. I have been pretty active about reading articles, researching grad school through this forum, grad school rulez, talking to past professors, etc, so I feel like I know what I' getting into and how to get there, but I still have a few questions. Do you have any ideas on how I can bolster my application in the time I have? I am preparing for the GRE, and generally do well on standardized tests, so that should be ok, but specifically I'm worried about my lack of research, what to do for a writing sample, the feeling I can only really get one great LOR (I really regret not forming better relationships with professors), and my GPA. (As a side note, is there a good way to go about asking a professor for a LOR who you didn't know outside of class?) I wish there was a way I could get into some research in my off time. I'm interested in mainly qualitative methods and the areas of social change, activism, social justice and peace studies. I was wondering if you might have suggestions for programs to consider? I know the importance of finding a "fit", but haven't found a quick way to look for programs/professors, and figured this might be a good resource. Also any suggestions for peace studies/interdisciplinary type programs (I can't find any rankings for those)? Is there a level of programs I should write off with my current qualifications? I know that I would be more interested in being a professor at a smaller Liberal Arts college as opposed to a large research university, what might I recently got diagnosed with ADD, is that worth mentioning on a supplement to my application if I feel like it might have made a difference in my undergraduate career? Please feel free to answer as many or as few questions as you feel able, and to refer me to other places, I'm still figuring out my way around here. I think that's pretty much it, thank you so much for your help.